Inside the Beltway: Post-Perry possibility

“I would hope that our party is not defined by Rand Paul and Ted Cruz. I’m not crazy about Rand Paul and Ted Cruz. But on the other hand, you know, guys like Chris Christie and Jeb Bush, I have a lot of regard for,” Mr. King added.

OBAMACARENADO

“Obamacare. Tornado. Obamacarenado,” proclaims the newest video from American Crossroads, the political action committee founded by Karl Rove. “Just when you thought it was safe to go to the doctor the perfect storm is coming. Are you ready?” the 45-second missive of doom asks.

“Obamacare’s three central promises — that costs would go down, that insurance wouldn’t change, and for universal coverage — are all now proven as not true, leading every American to wonder why we did this in the first place,” observes spokesman Jonathan Collegio.

‘THE ISSUE ISN’T GUNS’

“One year ago on July 20, Americans were deeply saddened by the tragedy in Aurora, Colo., in which 12 people were killed and 70 wounded,” says Michael J. Fitzpatrick, executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, who notes that “national dialogue” forums inspired by the National Conference on Mental Health last month will take place in three cities in the next week.

“One in four American adults experiences a mental health problem in any given year. The majority receive no treatment. Young adults in their 20s are the most common age group to experience the first onset of psychosis,” Mr. Fitzpatrick observes.

“For them, the issue isn’t guns. It is access to mental health care — a person being able to get help when it’s needed,” he says. “Commitment is needed to a mental health care system that includes mental health screening, early intervention, evidence-based mental health treatment and services, and family education and support.”

LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS

“On behalf of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, I applaud the North Carolina General Assembly’s passage of the new state law that permits students to use the Cherokee language to satisfy a ‘foreign’ language requirement for institutions of the University of North Carolina system.”

— Michell Hicks, Principal Chief of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.

JOE’S BIG DEAL

“I can die a happy man never having been President of the United States of America. But it doesn’t mean I won’t run. The judgment I’ll make is, first of all, am I still as full of as much energy as I have now — do I feel this? Number two, do I think I’m the best person in the position to move the ball? And, you know, we’ll see where the hell I am.

“And by the way, if you come in the office, I have two portraits hanging — one of Jefferson, one of Adams. Both vice presidents who became presidents. I joke to myself, I wonder what their portraits looked like when they were vice presidents.”

— Vice President Joseph R. Biden, on running for president in 2016, to GQ magazine.